1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a medicine dropper cap and bulb assembly apparatus, and particularly to such an apparatus wherein the bulbs and caps are oriented for assembly, without the use of lubricants or other materials that would contaminate the medicine dropper assembly.
2. Prior Art
The assembly of medicine dropper caps and bulbs is now usually performed manually. Productivity is slow and labor costs are high. The elastomeric bulbs are difficult to handle. The design of apparatus to automatically assemble the bulbs and the caps has encountered the problem of automatically orienting the caps and bulbs to be fed in proper position for assembly. The elastomeric bulbs have a high coefficient of friction and do not consistently achieve proper orientation by conventional feeding means. The addition of lubricants such as silicone, to reduce the inter-bulb frictional engagement is not acceptable because such lubricants contaminate the bulbs and render medicaments dispensed in dropper bottles impure. The removal of the contaminating silicone lubricants from the bulbs, if used, is difficult, cannot be performed completely. It has therefore been sought for a long period of time to create a medicine dropper cap and bulb assembly apparatus which is automatic and speedy, and does not need lubricants.